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Trevor Jordan

Technical & Operational Aspects of Interconnection. Trevor Jordan. +61 413 880 220 tjordan@kpmg.com.au. Introduction. My background 25 years in telecommunications in a wide variety of roles 10 years spent on interconnect from the beginning of competition in Australia

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Trevor Jordan

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  1. Technical & Operational Aspects of Interconnection Trevor Jordan +61 413 880 220 tjordan@kpmg.com.au 1

  2. Introduction • My background • 25 years in telecommunications in a wide variety of roles • 10 years spent on interconnect from the beginning of competition in Australia • Worked for new carriers, incumbent carriers, and government regulators over the last ten years 2

  3. Questions • Please ask questions at any time • If I have not explained something properly, then it needs to be clarified before we go any further • My knowledge of China is limited; if the material does not match the Chinese context, then let me know so that I can adapt it • Questions by email after the workshop 3

  4. Interconnection Objectives • There is no simple answer for interconnection • It depends on where you start and where you want to finish • Level of national infrastructure • National capacity • Development aspirations 4

  5. Interconnection Techniques • No single solution – a toolbox of techniques to be applied appropriately • Every regulatory requirement has a primary and a secondary effect • Efforts to encourage long-distance operators will have the effect of discouraging local access operators 5

  6. Interconnection Conundrum • Retail transactions are asymmetrical – the customer pays the carrier • Interconnection transactions are symmetrical – each carrier pays to terminate its calls but is paid for calls that it terminates • In an open market it may be difficult to distinguish the carriers from the customers 6

  7. Interconnection in Context • Simple Resale • Product unaltered • Value Added Resale • Product altered • Interconnection of Services • Products linked to others • Access to Infrastructure • New products created 7

  8. Simple Resale • Carrier (network operator) sells access services and/or calls to service provider • Service provider sells those services to end-customer • Service provider bills and supports end-customer • Allows service provider to offer a complete range of services to compete against carriers 8

  9. Value Added Resale • Carrier sells product to service provider • Service provider transforms those products into different products • Service provider sells those new products to end-customers • A service provider could purchase transmission services and combine them with switches or routers to create calls 9

  10. Reasons for Interconnection • To enable calls between networks • Long established practice • The reason for the creation of the ITU • Not entirely devoid of competition issues • To enable competition between services • Intended to provide for the rapid introduction competitive services, particularly long-distance • Principally a competition issue 10

  11. Simple Interconnection Interconnect charge (terminating) Retail charge   Local/Access Carrier POI Local/Access Carrier Call direction 11

  12. Simple Interconnection • Applicable to (in most cases): • Fixed to fixed local call • Fixed to mobile call • Mobile to fixed call • Mobile to mobile call • Sometimes applicable to: • Fixed to fixed long-distance call 12

  13. Bypass Interconnection Retail charge Interconnect charge (originating) Interconnect charge (terminating)   POI POI Local/Access Carrier Long Distance/ Bypass Carrier Local/Access Carrier Call direction 13

  14. Bypass Interconnection • Applicable to (in most cases): • Fixed to fixed long-distance call • Sometimes applicable to: • Fixed to mobile call • Mobile to mobile call • Mobile to fixed call 14

  15. Call Collection Areas   POI   Traffic in and out through POI 15

  16. Call Collection Areas • Interconnection charges depend on nature of Call Collection Area • City • Urban • Rural • Remote • Average of A$0.015 per minute • Varies with time of day and location 16

  17. Call Collection Areas • Australia has 66 Call Collection areas • Suits long-distance bypass traffic • Further subdivision for local calls • Probably around 250 POIs connection to other Local Access Carriers • POI may service a larger area: province or country 17

  18. Mobile Roaming • A form of airtime resale • Provides greater coverage for one or both carriers • Competition issues depend on • No coverage overlap • Some coverage overlap • Complete coverage overlap 18

  19. Mobile Roaming B A A B Geographically separate coverage areas. Little competitive conflict between the tow carriers. Roaming provides improvements in coverage for both carriers. 19

  20. Mobile Roaming B A A B Some overlap of coverage areas. Some competition for customers, but mutual benefit from increased coverage areas. Roaming may not operate within areas of common coverage. 20

  21. Mobile Roaming A A B Complete overlap of coverage and direct competition for customers. Roaming may be unidirectional (customers of carrier A can roam onto the network of carrier B). 21

  22. Mobile Roaming Charges • Depends on the purpose and level of competition • May be very low if there is mutual benefit for separate geographic regions • May be very high if there is substantial extension to coverage for one carrier • May be higher than retail charges 22

  23. Transit Carriage – 1 Carrier With Without No interconnection No interconnection 23

  24. Transit Carriage – 2 Carriers With Without 1 interconnection 1 interconnection 24

  25. Transit Carriage – 3 Carriers With Without 2 interconnections 3 interconnections 25

  26. Transit Carriage – 4 Carriers With Without 3 interconnections 6 interconnections 26

  27. Transit Carriage – 5 Carriers With Without 4 interconnections 10 interconnections 27

  28. Transit Carrier • Needed to avoid delay and high cost of market entry – network efficiency • Typically the incumbent carrier • May need regulatory requirement • May not be needed in the long-term and the market develops 28

  29. New Entrant Delay and Complexity • A new carrier entering a market with five existing carriers would need to establish a separate interconnection arrangement with each of those carriers, even though the total traffic volume may be very small • The alternative is to establish a single connection to an established transit carrier 29

  30. New Entrant Delay and Complexity • Direct connections between other carriers can be established later when they are economically justified • Refusal by the incumbent carrier to provide transit services or demands for excessive interconnect charges may be intended to impede the operation of new carriers 30

  31. Points of Interconnection • An economic more than a technical issue • There are technical limitations on interconnection, but there are numerous places in a network where interconnection can take place • Local exchanges • Trunk exchanges • International exchanges 31

  32. Points of interconnection • Number and location of POIs is a balance of fixed and variable costs • The larger the number of POIs, the closer the interconnecting carrier can get to the call destination and the lower the per minute charge (variable cost) • Each POI has a cost associated with its establishment and operation (fixed cost) 32

  33. Points of Interconnection • There is a trade-off between the cost of POIs and the amount of traffic carried • A provider of local call services might want POIs at each local telephone exchange • A provider of international service might want a POI at one point in the country or a limited number of high traffic points • The optimal number and location of POIs may change as traffic volume increases 33

  34. POI Technology • In some jurisdictions it is simply a joint in a cable connecting the two networks • In others it is a test/disconnection point in the building of one of the two carriers • One party (the incumbent carrier) is usually in a better position to provide the interconnecting link 34

  35. POI Technology • Incumbent carrier generally sets standards • Normally simple, stable technology because multiple vendors are involved • Standard transmission links are used to interconnect carriers • Multiples of 2Mbit/s or 1.5 Mbit/s • Voice channel structure • STM may be used in future 35

  36. POI Technology • Modified and simplified CSS7 signalling is used to control the connection • TUP or preferably ISUP • Network protection modifications • Barring of no charge messages • Isolating control of network timers • Review of signalling system to identify all threats to network integrity 36

  37. POI Technology • Call records and performance statistics would be measured at the POI • Call destinations would be monitored • The POI may be for limited range of destinations and types of call • Calls rejected according to dialled number 37

  38. Future POIs • Carriers, including incumbents, are increasingly using voice over IP within their networks • Inefficient to convert to voice circuits in one network across the POI and back to packet in the other network • Opportunity for conversion devices (not limited to POIs) between circuit and packet 38

  39. Handover • Near-end handover • Used for interconnection to mobile networks and for calls to special services (eg 1800) • Originating network does not know the destination of the call and delivers to the terminating network at the closest point • Far-end handover • Call delivered as close as possible to the destination 39

  40. Interconnect Billing Systems • Depend on the complexity of the commercial arrangements • More focussed on costs than retail charges • Generally simpler retail billing • May not provide retail level of call detail • Records will be kept on both sides of the POI and there will have to be a reconciliation process 40

  41. Bill and Keep • Simplified approach to billing for certain types of interconnection • No interconnect billing system – each carrier keeps its full retail revenue and carries the interconnected traffic for free • Traffic must be reasonably symmetrical (not long-distance bypass) 41

  42. Bill and Keep • Induces strange behaviour • No carrier wants incoming traffic such as call centres and internet service providers as it generates no revenue • Works with the interconnection of free local calls • Useful in the short-term because it is simple to implement 42

  43. Interconnect Billing • Typical Parameters • Call count • May include unsuccessful calls (call attempts) • Call minutes • Call records • May be collected for analysis and fault finding purposes • Data volume in the future? 43

  44. Interconnection Agreements • Substantial long-term relationship • Subject to regular review (possibly as a result of regulator intervention) • Complex range of products and issues • Not like most commercial agreements, the other party may be reluctant (particularly the incumbent carrier) 44

  45. Carrier Relationships • Regular (possibly continuous) need to negotiate extensions (new products/technologies) and reviews of agreements • Regular contact for routine activities • Need for regular review meetings to assess progress and improve processes (one to two months) • Formal escalation process to handle disputes 45

  46. Carrier Relationships • Four major issues • Ordering and provisioning of services • Operations and maintenance issues • Billing and settlement issues • May also include access to facilities 46

  47. Local Loop Unbundling • Copper pair between end-user and telephone exchange building • Direct access to twisted copper pair • Widest variety of services, but greatest technical complexity • Provision of managed services (principally DSL) by incumbent local access carrier • Less technical complexity, but less variety • Both 47

  48. Local Loop Unbundling Customer Premises Telephone Exchange Building Street Cabling (Twisted Copper Pair) 48

  49. DSL Configurations Telephone Exchange MDF Customer Premises Switching Equipment Street Cable    Leased Space eg DSLAM 49

  50. Local Loop Issues • Cost determination • May be greater than retail • Shared use • Difficult co-ordination, but lower cost • Life-line telecommunications • Limits use of voice over internet • Need to retain standard telephone service 50

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